Wow, another cool fungi/slime mold!! How do you actually get these things?!?!? I for one would like to replace my boring shrubs with these fascinating creatures. How do I begin? I mulch and add corn meal, bunny food, SBM, milorganite, compost, etc. What else do I need to do?? I'm jealous.

It is my personal way of doing things, I have my iris and peonies in one garden. It is set up that the iris will come along and be blooming as the peonies are finishing their growth, with blooms to follow. Except for the area immediately around the plants, I have shredded leaves as mulch. Darned few weeds get through (or want to get through that mulch). Any time that you significantly disturb soil, as you will be doing, you will stir up weed seeds. The goal is to keep the weeds under control and then not disturb the soil. On a regular basis, whenever I am prepping a new bed and there is NOTHING there that I want saved, I pour boiling water on the weeds. The biggest drawback is that it will kill whatever organisms that are there and will reduce your fertility. I also pour boiling water of cracks in the driveway. Weeds are a part of gardening, pulling them is good exercise (and you can tell your health care professional that you are getting regular exercise!). They will be there, but they can be controlled by not giving them a chance to take over. Jim

Thanks ronbre, for all your thoughts, there are some good ones in there! I love my house, but there are some things that were not well thought out by us, but that was because we were living in a FEMA trailer and wanted out of it in a hurry, so we found this houseplan and built it pretty much as is from the plan. The back door and the breakfast nook and the fireplace could have used some tweaking in where they were placed, but we were in such a hurry we didn't catch that. Weren't even in the house 2 years, when we got hit by another hurricane, and flooded with 3 ft of water, so again, we were in a hurry to get it fixed and get back "home" rather than living somewhere temporarily. I have always wanted a fireplace with a mantel to decorate, and so I think it needs to be a focal point, but obviously the big tv is also a focal point. My recliners are both actually a chestnut colored leather, one is just darker than the other, as we didn't decide we wanted two when we purchased the first one, therefore they are obviously from different dye lots. =( Again, my mistake, that's what I get for being in a hurry! But I definitely want to add more seating in this room, not just move around the chairs that I have now. I need a conversation area and so that is why I am thinking two club style chairs for either side of the entertainment center or adding a loveseat. Then I could make the reading nook like you are talking about by the window!!! The ceilings are great to look at and to have "mood lighting"(DH calls it nude lighting in the bedroom...ha) but it also makes me think things have to be centered off of the ceiling, like the entertainment center or our bed for example. You answered one question about the art with the red in it. I figured it was too big for that wall, but just wanted to see what others thought. It would only have about an inch clearance around it. I am also looking for some kind of chest or demilune table for that little wall. Trying to make that DH landing spot for keys, wallet etc, instead of the bar in the kitchen. The nightstands in the bedroom are the same height, the lamp on the left is a little shorter than the one on the right, I just thought they probably shouldn't be taller than the headboard of the bed. It's not real easy to reach the lamp to turn it off from bed. I need a console/buffet, more seating, coffee table, end table, lamps, rug, artwork, drapes. Accessories, I'll worry about later. I just want to get my big pieces set first. I have "hurricane fatigue" and just want this done and pray that we will have a quiet season this year, so we can actually relax and actually enjoy our home.

I can't thank you enough for all of the replies. It looks like dark wins, which was my husband's choice. After reading several of the posts indicating the light trim doesn't look finished, I have to say I finally "got it". Several of you suggested I paint the front door dark as well. I know you can't see it in the picture, but it actually is the same color as the dark trim. Magnaverde, your post made me laugh. When we were building the house, I had terrible anxiety about the garage, but it was my husband's dream and is now his "man cave". Luckily, we live on 25 acres at the end of a private, dead-end road and the house is set back far from the road. We've also placed several pine trees in strategic locations to try to mask the doors. So, when someone comes to our home, the garage doesn't smack them in the face until they are parked in front of it. :) Here are some pictures showing the the house from a different aspect. Thanks again, everyone!